It has taken us a little bit of time to get this one together (my fault!), but I have been wanting to feature the Mersey Belles on Got A Ukulele for some time now.
The Mersey Belles are Danielle Laura Perkins (Nancy) and Lindsey Stainthorpe (Pearl) who have seen an astronomic rise in their fan base over the last year or so, performing with style and verve. They describe themselves as 'cousins who take you on a trip down memory lane, infusing the ukulele with fabulous renditions of all the old classics from the 20's, whilst making songs from the 21st century sound better than they do on the wireless radio!'
Amber Von Nagel from Ukulele Magazine called them, 'English Uke Chanteuses who channel a retro vibe in pursuit of modern day fun'.
What I know is that I last saw them on the main stage of the recent Grand Northern Ukulele Festival and the crowd went wild for them. I have been catching up with the duo recently.
Mersey Belles on stage at GNUF 2014
Within my readership are a lot of players taking steps to getting out and performing. What are your best beginners tips for stage performance? Nancy: One tip from me is to try and not take yourself too seriously. Obviously me and Pearl DO take our music seriously, but we are doing what we do because of the love of it and to have fun. I think it's important to always remember that.
Pearl: Be prepared, be organised, and lastly, get up and love what you are doing. It comes across when you are on stage. I can agree with all of that! But what about nerves though? We all get them! Pearl: I get terrible nerves. Even though I'm a confident person it is still really nerve wracking performing to large AND small audiences. But as soon as I get on stage and look at Nancy I forget those nerves and sing my heart out!
Nancy: I do get nervous, yes, but not as much as I used to back when we first started. My problem with my nerves is that it's my uke playing that suffers, not my singing. I've been a professional singer for a good few years now and only playing the uke for a couple, so that's probably why.